You Need This
by SgtPastulio
Summary: KaibaXOC. If I'm going to suffer, you'll suffer with me. And the gravity will pull us closer. A side-story of 'He's Like A Knife In My Head'.
1. Chapter 1

"Junk... junk... junk... bill... junk... Seto... bill..." The chair creaked in protest as Ren lounged back, balanced precariously on two antique legs. Letters slapped flat against the table, sorted into several different piles. Gossip-worthy, and not gossip-worthy. This was one of Ren's favorite parts of working at the Kaiba estate: going through Seto's mail. The CEO got quite a bit of each day and, being the lazy millionaire he was, would rather throw money at someone that sort it himself. But Ren didn't mind. It was a great way to waste time and nose into Seto's personal life.

"Car payment... love letter... love letter... junk... school... me?" Ren paused, leaning forward and setting the chair back on all four legs. It was rare, very rare for her to get mail that wasn't a bill for her moped or a bank statement. Who even knew that she lived here? She had told next to nobody that she had moved into the Kaiba estate. Whoever this letter was from had likely taken her address from the bank, or something equally illegal...

She glanced up at the return address, brushing a strand of flyaway brunette out of her eyes, and her face fell into an annoyed scowl. Stamped in the upper left corner of the envelope was simply _KC_, the KaibaCorp logo.

"Kaiba!" She hollered, rising to her feet to search out the CEO. "Kaiba, take me off your damn mailing list, I don't want your junk!"

She found him lounging in the living room, feet kicked up lazily on the coffee table, a laptop resting on his legs.

"Hey." She began, crossing her arms as she glared down at him, "If you want to tell me something, just tell it to me. Stop sending me mail and getting me excited over nothing."

Kaiba spared her a glance, smirking as he laid eyes on the enveloped tucked beneath her arm. "Did you even read it before you came to rage at me?"

"No, I'm trying to prove a point, rich boy." Ren snapped back, "I _live_ with you; tell me any news yourself."

Seto's smirk broadened. "Read the letter, Kuroki.

Ren scoffed, tearing the envelope open at one end, a thick folded document sliding out into her hand. She flicked it open with a flourish and began to read. "_KaibaCorp employee,_ -oh, that's warm and fuzzy, did you write that yourself?- _KaibaCorp employee, blah blah, bullshit, we value your efforts, blah, fluff, bullshit, we will be elated to_

_see you at this year's first annual KaibaCorp re--_ no."

Her gaze shot right back up to Kaiba's face. She had never seen him looking so smug. He was as close to a grin as she had ever seen, and there was a mischevious glint in his eye.

"Oh, you're a funny man, Kaiba. You're dreaming if you think I'm going on this stupid company retreat."

"You have to, or you're fired." He replied, just barely containing the glee in his voice. Ren laughed aloud, sitting on the table before him and slapping his laptop shut.

"I'm not going." She spoke, staring into his glinting icy eyes, "You won't fire me. Mokuba _loves_ me."

"It isn't up to me." Kaiba said, lazily folding his arms over his chest. "If you don't check in at the hotel, HR will process your pink slip and send you your final paycheck bu the end of the first night."

"But...!" Ren spluttered, panic touching her voice, "Kaiba!"

"I won't intervene."

"Ooh!"

Ren shot to her feet and stomped off, pausing only to glare at Seto's head from behind the couch. That _dick_! That complete and utter _ass_! She didn't think that she could hate anyone more than him in that moment.

"My VP and PR reps," Seto began again, flipping his laptop open and taking up his idle typing, "Are making me participate. They say it's good for my public image. So if I'm going to suffer, you are going to suffer with me."

Ren moaned in agony, head lolling back in defeat. She glanced down at the stack of papers, before slapping them down against her thigh. "Well, I'd better get packing since _someone_ was too lazy to tell me on his own. And I'm not riding in no bus to this thing. I'm going in the limo with you and Mokuba, so you won't _'suffer alone'_."

"Oh, I'm sure I won't." Seto mumbled, as Ren stomped off up the stairs. His screen-saver blurred into vision, Mokuba and Ren grinning up at him from the poolside. It was rare for those angry amber eyes to express the sort of glee that they were in the photo. It was a fantastic picture of his brother, that had been why he had chosen it. But his gaze was continually drawn back to those soft honey eyes. He smacked the spacebar on the keyboard several times, the image vanishing and the KaibaCorp logo taking its place.

"I'm sure I won't."

------------------------------

_Ren Kuroki is BEYOND PISSED. KaibaCorp company retreat all weekend. FUCK MY LIFE._

Ren hit the enter key so hard that it popped off the keyboard and smacked against the monitor. She rolled her chair away from the computer and began to toss clothes haphazardly into an open bag on her bed.

"You haven't packed yet?" Mokuba quipped from the doorway of the rich violet room. The light from the bay window perfectly illuminated the heap of clothes on Ren's bed, and cast a frightening shadow on her furious face. "I'll take that look as a 'no'."

"Your brother..." She grunted, stuffing her things deep into the traveling bag, "His VP," She yanked at the mouth of the bag, "And his PR reps..." She shut it with a furious zip, "Can all go fuck themselves. Fuck KaibaCorp, and fuck everyone responsible for forcing me into going on this damned trip!"

"Mokuba gave a hearty laugh, watching the canvas strain against the zipper. "Well, yeah, it's partially my fault. Ren, did you even look at the list of things to pack?"

"Ugh, there's a list?" She groaned, snatching up the packet once again. She flipped through the pages for a moment before glancing back up at the teen. "Wait..."

"I'm the Vice President, yeah." He shrugged his shoulders and plopped down onto her bed, "It's just keeping everything in the family, just in case something happens to Seto. I don't do much. He just doesn't want me to get screwed over again, like when our parents..."

Ren's shoulders slumped before the silent youth. She couldn't say that she envied him. "Mokuba..."

"Yeah, let's not talk about it."

"Right." She agreed, nodding her head once in understanding. "In any event, I still hate all of you." She shot him a playful smirk, hoping to lighten the mood once again as she unzipped her bag and dumped its contents onto the bed, "Okay, read it off, Mo. Why do I need for this stupid trip?"

And so Mokuba began, and Ren re-packed, having to switch suitcases due to the sheer amount of clothes she would need over the four day trip.

"Come on, Ren." Mokuba began, watching the babysitter stuff clothes into a proper suitcase. "It won't be so bad. There's even a cocktail party on the last night. You like to dance, don't you?"

"Yes, but why would there be a _dance_?" She raised an eyebrow as she stuffed her toiletries to the bottom of the bag. "Kaiba doesn't dance."

"My brother didn't expect to be going." He explained, shrugging his shoulders, "Seto gave HR a budget and told them to go to town."

"Ah." She quirked her eyebrows in understanding, staring into her open closet. "Which dress am I bringing to this thing?"

"One that will turn heads." Mokuba smirked, a much warmer version of his brother's.

"But I don't _care_, Mokuba." She sighed, rolling her eyes. She placed her hands on her hips and stuck out her bottom lip in a pensive pout. Decisions, decisions...

Several loud pops emanated from her computer, and she strolled over to check where they had come from, a deep blue jumper in her hand. Her FaceBook page had suddenly exploded with chat boxes, each and every one of them asking about her retreat. She clicked faster and faster, but the boxes just kept opening, each with at least five queries about when she had started working for Kaiba, if she knew him personally, if she could get an autograph. Her web browser froze, overwhelmed by the sheer amount of incoming activity. "Oh, what the Hell!?"

"Ren..." Mokuba murmured, pointing to the corner of her bed. Her cell phone was buzzing out of control, dancing across the lavender quilt as text after text poured in. Ren cursed loudly, snatching up the phone and flipping it open, completely unable to read anything, the new messages appearing too quickly for her to read the previous ones.

"Ugh, _why_ did I tell the internet that I worked for Seto...?" She groaned, clutching her hands to her temples in frustration. The phone chirped to life, this time an actual phone call. "_What!?_" Ren snapped, flipping the phone open and slamming it to her ear.

"_Gosh_, Renny, still all grumpy?" Ren's jaw clenched, lips set in a tight line. She had not spoken to Emi Takumo since the girl had walked out on their apartment lease eight months ago, and Ren would have been perfectly happy to never speak to her again. Yet, here she was, on the phone with the catty, giggling idiot yet again. Ren was fully convinced that the gods were having a good laugh at her expense today.

"What do you want that's Seto Kaiba related, Emi?" She quipped, rolling her eyes and shaking her head in Mokuba's direction. If she was anything like the others exploding her phone with texts and crashing her computer, she was interested in her working life.

"Oh, so it _is_ true!" Emi squealed, Ren squinting one eye as she recoiled from the noise, "You _do_ work for him! What's he like, Renny, is he even better looking in person?"

"It's none of your business who I work for, Emi." Ren spoke, the beginning of a headache pulsing in her left temple. "And just so you know, he's a douchebag. Not that you would care, anyway, you'd fuck anything with a fat wallet and a pulse."

"Ooo, you're so mean, Ren. I just wanted to check up and see how my bestest friend is doing. It's been so long since we've talked, after all. Oh, is he single?"

"I'm hanging up, Emi."

"Oh, wait!" Ren could almost hear Emi grinning on the other end of the line. "You're fucking him!"

Her mouth fell open in utter disgust, her brain scrambling to find the proper words to express her revulsion. "What in the _hell_ led you to that conclusion!?"

"Oh, I get it, Renny. Why you want me to think he's this giant jerk and all that. You're fucking him, plain and simple! That's fine, I know plenty of interns who have been in his bed, just don't be surprised when he--"

"Emi!" Ren snapped, eyes ablaze with an anger she hadn't felt in years, "I. Am not. Fucking. Seto Kaiba! Not that it would matter if I was or not, you'd swoop in and seduce him regardless! You know what, I don't even give a damn. Fuck his brains out, Emi. Be another notch in his bedpost, that's all you were ever good for, anyway!"

She shut her phone with a snap and slung it across the room and onto her bed in fury. She reeled on Mokuba, her finger raised, poised to attack. He stared back at her expectantly, pretty violet eyes wide and understanding. "I... am _not_ fucking Seto Kaiba."

Mokuba raised his hands, shrugging his shoulders. "I didn't think you were."

She exhaled a long breath, shoulders slumping as she glared at her suitcase, phone still buzzing next to it. "Mokuba, you had better make this trip worth all of this bull."


	2. Chapter 2

Ren spent the better portion of the three hour drive with her headphones screwed deep into her ears and her forehead pressed against the cool window, watching the city turn to countryside. Mokuba busied himself with some sort of chirping puzzle game for the duration of the trip, while Seto simply sat with his eyes closed, arms crossed over his chest, likely trying to put himself into a coma before they arrived.

Ren's phone had continued to buzz and jangle throughout the night, and she had elected to just shut it in her desk drawer for the duration of the trip. The last thing she wanted was another mocking phone call from Emi, and a weekend free of her mobile would be good for her.

A bump in the road smacked Ren's head hard against the window, and she cursed loudly, Seto cracking one eye open and Mokuba looking up from his game to stare at her. She muttered a quick apology, moving to gaze out the window yet again. The landscape had changed drastically; a glassy iron lake reflected a lush mountainside, lawns sprawling out in all directions around a grand nine-floor hotel. The gardens were only beginning to burst to life in the crisp early spring, splotches of color dotting the deep green lawns.

Several busloads of people were knotted together in front of the hotel, lingering back, likely waiting hopefully for a glimpse of Kaiba. Ren muttered something about them resembling sheep as she rolled her eyes, shoving her iPod back into her bag. The limo slowed to a halt before the grand country hotel, and Ren rocketed from the vehicle before the driver even had the chance to get the door for her, stretching lazily and basking in the early spring sunlight.

"Pretty?" Mokuba asked her, looking out at the glassy lake, breathing in the crisp country air.

"Mm." Ren couldn't help but smile, nodding her head in agreement. "Honestly, I was expecting boot camp."

"Mokuba." Seto spoke, beckoning his brother over, "Go get your room. I've got--"

"Got to deal with sheep, meet you at brunch." Mokuba nodded, a grin splitting across his visage. "I know the drill, Seto. Do your best to not tear anyone's head off!"

Kaiba gave a low hum, a soft smile touching his lips as he mussed his brother's hair, shooing him off as other employees approached the limo.

"Alright, guide me through the sea of unfamiliarity, Moses." Ren smirked, nudging Mokuba into the lead. She felt incredibly out of place amidst the throng of people with... real jobs. She knew nobody, let alone where she was supposed to be going. But she had decided late the night before that she would make the most of it. This retreat was the closest thing to a vacation she had been on since high school, and so what if it was a weekend full of Seto Kaiba? Truthfully, she was still rather irritated with him, moreso than usual, and he was really the driving force behind her misery. But it was very likely that she wouldn't be seeing much of him. After all, there were some five hundred people attending the retreat. There were plenty of others to mingle with.

"Mister Mokuba! Oh, marvelous to see you've finally arrived!"

"This is Isono." Mokuba muttered, waving as they drew closer to the front desk and the gangly, mousy-haired man waving them down. "He works directly under my brother. Seto kind of runs him ragged, so... try to be nice to him."

"Mo--"

"I said 'try'." Mokuba smiled, "I know how you are. Hi, Isono!"

Isono nodded his thinning head of hair at them in a polite bow. "Wonderful to see you've made it okay, sir." He spoke, grasping Mokuba's hands in a handshake almost too firm for his spindly fingers. He turned his eyes then to Ren, giving her a quick once-over. "And your lady friend is...?"

"Ren Kuroki." She stuck out her hand for him to shake, "I'm actually Mokuba's nanny. He's kinda young for me."

"Ah." Isono nodded curtly, "Mister Seto's lady friend, then."

"No." Ren insisted, holding up her index finger to interrupt him, "Nanny. Let's set that straight right now."

"Yes... of course, Miss. Now then, shall we get your rooming assignments? Young Master Kaiba and Miss Kuroki, you'll both be in suite 902. Here are your room keys, and the keys into 901, Master Kaiba's suite."

Ren glanced from the plastic in her hand, to Mokuba, to Isono. "Why do I get a key to Kaiba's room?"

Isono opened his mouth to speak and promptly snapped it shut again. A light flush rose to his cheeks, and he babbled on incomprehensibly about something or another. Ren caught the words 'nanny' and 'typically' and 'master suite', but beyond that, it was all word vomit. She rolled her eyes, abandoning all hope of comprehension, and gave Mokuba's sleeve a tug, yanking him towards the elevator.

"Do all of your babysitters usually end up fucking your brother?" Ren quipped, mashing the button for the elevator several times. She shoved her sunglasses to the top of her head, glancing down at the shorter teen.

"No. Nanny is just the cover Seto usually gives the girl he just happens to be fucking at the time."

She glanced back down at him, stewing over that new information. "This is the reputation I get stuck with? I bet you've never had a proper nanny, have you?"

"Nope." Mokuba spared her a kind smile, and she rolled her eyes, smiling in return.

"I hate you all so much." Ren chuckled, giving Mokuba a hard, playful shove away from her, taking up her suitcase yet again as the elevator doors drew open before them. The elevator emptied of all of one person, a slim dark-haired man in pleated slacks and a loosely tucked button-down, pulling his lush short hair back as Ren and Mokuba stepped inside.

"Why hello, hello." The other man spoke, arm bracing himself on the wall by the controls. "Who've we got, now? A little Kaiba and Miss...?"

Ren spared the half-suited man a glance out of the corner of her eye, remaining silent. She really had very little interest in getting to know these less than suave employees in elevators. She pressed the button for the ninth floor, and the doors closed before her, shutting her in, thoroughly trapping them for the duration of the lift.

"I'm sorry, I don't think I caught that." The strange man quipped, leaning his head around so he could get a better look at Ren's face. "Your dainty little voice is just so soft. Don't be shy, I won't bite." She scowled, a look that could rival Seto's, as she gazed into the other man's face.

"That's because I never said anything."

"Oh, how rude of me! I should have introduced myself first. Name's Morioka. Jiro Morioka. And you are?"

Ren hesitated at first, her steady gaze still fixed on the side of Morioka's face. "Kuroki," she spoke, turning her eyes back on the elevator door, counting down the floors until she could escape.

"Ahhh, Kuroki." Morioka nodded slowly, contemplating her carefully, "Hey, is that like--"

"Yes, it's like Meisa Kuroki. No, we're not related."

"And what might your first name be, Miss Not-Meisa Kuroki?"

Ren closed her eyes to the sound of his voice, trying her very hardest to not roll her eyes at him. Was he clueless, or was it that she just wasn't being blunt enough? Boys just didn't know how to take 'no' for an answer anymore. It was at times like this when she missed junior high, when the boys were just too shy to ask for dates in the first place, let alone start hitting on girls.

"Kuroki?"

"Do you just ride the elevator up and down, trying to pick up girls?" Mokuba piped up, studying the KaibaCorp Creeper carefully, an eyebrow quirked in curiosity. Ren let out a quiet sigh of relief. Maybe calling Morioka on it would make him knock it off.

Jiro just chuckled, shoulders shaking with glee, "Kinda." Ren's head fell forward at a slight angle. At least the pickup artist was honest. "Ah, ninth floor? You'll be upper management, then. Graphic designers like me will be down on floor five, but then, you probably already knew that."

Before he could make any further assumptions, Ren had rocketed from the elevator, practically dragging Mokuba along behind her to escape from Jiro. She fumbled in her back pocket for her card key, scanning the hallway desperately for room 902.

"Bye, Miss Upper Management!" He yelled, waving from the closing elevator doors. "Catch you at brunch!"

"Unlikely." She mumbled, swiping her key and shoving the suite door open, slamming it behind herself and Mokuba. The teenager was poorly disguising his laughter as a coughing fit, and Ren smirked, shoving the back of his head. "So far? Not worth it."

"Oh what, you don't like Morioka?" He snickered, "It's okay. He's a good graphic designer, I hear, but I always thought he was a little odd."

"'Odd' is a polite way of describing it." Ren smiled, dropping her things in the living area. The suite was far nicer than any apartment she had ever lived in. The vast living and kitchen area overlooked the glassy lake, a perfect view of the entire hotel estate. A flat-screen television was mounted just above a black marble fireplace, fresh flowers a colorful contrast against the rest of the white and black suite. Ren poked her head into one of two bedrooms, this one with a similar view of the lake set against silken furnishings, the canopy bed slung with lush cream curtains.

"Well, at least sleeping will be decent." Ren shrugged, reaching to her back pocket for a phone that wasn't there. She was still torn over leaving her BlackBerry behind, but it was really for the best, she had reasoned. She could text and Tweet and update her FaceBook to her heart's content in four days. For now, she would just have to... distract herself. "Mokuba, what time is it?"

"About that time." He shoved his own phone into his back pocket. Ren's heart gave a tiny twinge of jealousy. "We should probably get going."

As they stepped from the room, a couple of giggling women scampered past, to the door just next to theirs. Seto's suite. One of them pressed her eye to the tiny peephole in the door, trying desperately to catch a glimpse of a perhaps half-naked Kaiba.

"Hey." Ren tapped one of the pair on the arm. "I think he's showering. Keep your eyes peeled."

One gave a shriek of glee and shoved the other out of the way so she could get a better look.

"Honestly, Mokuba, if they only saw him like I do..."

"I'm pretty sure they don't care." He spoke, rolling his eyes in amusement. "I think a good seventy percent of the women who are interested in my brother don't want to date him. They--"

"Stop there, you know I hate hearing about his sexcapades." She tapped the button to call the elevator and it opened at once, Morioka waiting there, quirking his eyebrows at her. "On second thought, tell me a nice long story while we wait for the next one."

"Get in there." Mokuba grasped her by the elbow and pulled her into the elevator, hitting the button for the ground floor.

"Fancy running into you here, Kuroki." Ren turned her gaze to Morioka, who had sidled right up next to her, hovering over her with his hand on the wall.

"Fancy that." She parroted back monotonously, counting down the floors until she could flee. The doors slid open at the fifth floor, a handful of people piling in and pinning her against the panel of buttons. Ren sighed through her nose, Mokuba sending her an apologetic glance. She was done with the elevator. She shoved a hand between the closing doors, forcing them back open and slipping through the gap she had created.

"Ren!" Mokuba protested, shouting through the closing doors.

"I'll meet you downstairs!" She waved from the hallway, "I just need some air! Claustrophobia!"

She felt bad, really, but not bad enough to want to stay behind in the elevator. Ren set off down the hallway at a leisurely pace, locating the staircase and beginning her descent as slowly as possible. She was going to make damn sure that she got a seat in the back, as far away from Morioka as humanly possible.

She arrived at the main ballroom just as people were beginning to settle down and take their seats. Ren opted to lean against the back wall by the door, taking up a croissant from a neighboring table as Kaiba took the podium. A speech? Ren sighed through her nose, buttery flakes raining down onto her cleavage as she ate. She brushed the flakes away, and when she looked back up, she caught Kaiba's eye. He was staring right at her, watching carefully with those piercing blue eyes. Some days, Ren was positive he could shoot lasers from them.

"Tch." Ren stuck her tongue out and clapped her thumb and middle fingers together at him in a mocking impression. The corners of his mouth quirked up just slightly as he spoke, and she could swear that there was just the tiniest hint of a laugh in his eyes as he tore his gaze away and continued to address his company.

Ren dropped her hand to her side, mouth slack in a stunned smile. He probably just thought she was being stupid. But on the other hand... she could maybe see, just a little bit, why women chased after him.


	3. Chapter 3

The sun felt especially hot as Ren traipsed out onto the sprawling lawn outside of the hotel the next morning, the pale skin of her cheeks quickly warming. Fabulous, a stupid team building exercise, a gay-ass outfit, _and_ a sunburn. Sweat rolled down the her neck, soaking into the back of her tee shirt, her dark blue mesh shorts sticking wetly to the back of her legs.

"Ren!" Mokuba waved to her from across the lawn, beckoning her over to the sea of blue and white clad employees, the teen among them. She couldn't help but feel like one of a herd of cattle, shoved in with the horde of identically dressed employees.

"What'd I miss?" She quipped, neck craning to stare at the seven-foot high plywood box behind the herd of KaibaCorp employees. Surrounding the box were several tall iron posts, each with a tiny camera mounted on the top. Ren sighed, her shoulders slumping at the prospect of whatever they were doing possibly ending up on the internet, or in some stupid team building orientation video.

"Oh, just most of the explanation of the exercise." The younger Kaiba quipped, sighing at her, "But it's okay. We're all split into teams of five. The other two people in our team, Yui and Tatsuya, they're wearing black ribbons, here's yours—"

Ren tied the ribbon around her wrist, trying to wrap her head around how exactly paddling a canoe across the lake, collecting a bunch of puzzle pieces from a giant maze, and then assembling them into some ridiculous statue was going to help the company run more smoothly.

"So, you're going to be running the maze and Seto's going to be guiding you through on the GPS. Just listen to what he says and you'll make it through okay."

She sighed through her nose, glancing over her shoulder at the CEO as she screwed the BlueTooth headset into her ear. She turned back to Mokuba and had to double take back to Seto. Gym clothes. By god, he was wearing gym clothes along with the rest of them. She almost didn't notice him amidst the sea of white and blue, but his steely composure made him stick out like a sore thumb. It was so strange to see him in street clothes; Seto was always super formal even around the house. It was like he spent all of his time in a full, ridiculous suit.

She shook her head, trying to rid her mind of the image as she strolled to her starting point. The event was about to begin, and the last thing she wanted bouncing around in her head was Kaiba in exaggerated hot pants and a v-neck tee. Ren grimaced and cursed her overactive imagination, cracking her neck and stretching her arms.

A gunshot sounded somewhere behind her, signaling the start of the race. She took a deep breath, shaking her limbs to limber up. It had been a while since she had last run in any sort of race, and while she was a little worried about her ACL, it had been five years since her injury. There was very little that could go wrong.

While she stood daydreaming, a mesh bag filled with blocky puzzle pieces was thrust into her hands, and she stood stunned while other teams around her turned tail and ran into the plywood maze. She took a moment to work over why she was holding a soggy bag of blocks, before a loud screeching noise filled her brain, the feedback from Kaiba yelling into the BlueTooth for her to move, knocking her back into reality. Ren turned on her heel and booked it into the maze, shoving past a couple more people and forcing her way in.

"Left at this fork, right at the next one, pick up the pace, I'm not going to lose because you spaced out at the gun."

"Yeah, well it isn't all me, so you can fire a bunch of other people too, if we lose." Ren snapped back at the CEO, whipping around the first corner and jogging down the long strip to the next turn. Around that second corner was a dead end, but hanging from the wall were small sacks of puzzle pieces, one in a different color for each team.

"What I do with these when I'm done?" She asked, grabbing the black one and stuffing it into the larger bag, hopping back a few steps to return back into the thick of the maze.

"It doesn't matter, Mokuba's going to take care of it. Just get him the pieces so you don't embarrass me."

"So I'm allowed to tell you to fuck your mother if we win, right?" Ren snapped back, snaking around other employees, not bothering to mind her bag. She was certain she had smacked it against at least one or two people in her haste to grab pieces, and she didn't much care at the moment. Her only thought was of getting the puzzle pieces as swiftly as possible, and telling Kaiba to suck it after they won.

"Ren, _listen_ to me! I said _left_, where are you going!?"

"I'm kicking ass and taking names, Kaiba, shut up and let me do my job!"

"You're doing it wrong," Seto snapped back, Ren half tuning him out as she snatched up another three bags. There was just one more she needed to grab, and then they were golden. She couldn't see how it could have gone any better. "If you had listened to me, I'd have given you the best route to take! Now you have to go all the way back to the middle of the maze and then get yourself out! Turn right and then take the second right."

"Chill out, we're still cool. How many people are out there assembling their shit already?"

"Two, so grab that last one and then haul out here. Mokuba's good with puzzles, but he's going to have to slap it together in two seconds at the rate you've moved at."

"Okay, shut up." She quipped, taking that second right and snatching up their last sack, sprinting through the maze and emerging on the opposite end.

"What did I tell you?"

"I know; shut up!" Ren swore under her breath, hustling around the maze and skidding to a halt in front of Mokuba, dumping out all the puzzle pieces on the table in front of him. "Fuckin'…!" She wheezed, gasping in lungfuls of air, "Go go go!" Ren sucked in air like she had been deprived of it all her life. In high school she had been a sprinter on the track team, and while she was still fast, she lacked the stamina she had once had. Still, she walked in circles around Mokuba's table, watching the whiz kid slap pieces together, assembling them into a three dimensional dragon.

Mokuba was close, just a few pieces off, and it was really coming down to the wire. Nobody that she could see around them was as close as Mokuba was, but she couldn't see down to the other end. Ren could only hope that he could finish first. She really wanted to see the look on Seto's face when she told him to suck a fat one.

"Stop! We have a winning team! Lime team, come on up!" Ren's face fell, her shoulders slumping as a group of men in green cheered on the opposite end of the cluster of tables. She heaved a sigh. Mokuba had been so close. Just a few more pieces and the head would have been on the dragon, and they would have won.

"This is your fault, in every way, shape, and form." Seto quipped, suddenly standing behind her, his arms crossed over his chest, looming over Ren like a harbinger of death. "If you'd have listened to me—"

"Oh, I'm sorry, maybe if you screamed a bit louder, I'd have heard you." Ren retorted, turning in place to glare up at him. "It's a stupid game, stop acting like it's the end of the world."

"You're a reflection of my judgment, and you just made me look like an idiot for hiring you."

"I couldn't care less how you look!" She snorted, cocking her head at him. "If you care so much about your public image, don't put people like me on your team if you don't think I can help you win!"

Mokuba stepped between the squabbling pair, pushing Ren back a few steps from Seto. "Come on now, guys, it's just a game. Can we get lunch? Food?"

Ren took another step back, shaking her head and tossing the BlueTooth back at Kaiba's chest. "Yeah, so long as you order some fuckin' humble pie for big brother."

She held up two fingers, pointed to her eyes, and then pointed at Seto, before marching off across the lawn. She was in no mood for more bullshit today, even if it did mean serving Kaiba up a nice steaming slice of 'suck it' pie.

**********

The mountain cast a long shadow over the hotel estate, the sun just barely peeking over its peak as Ren made her way down to the lake. A towel was slung low around her waist and her camera bag bumped against her back, the hollow thumping of her feet on the dock near deafening in her solitude.

Ren had noticed the glowing mountain the night before, but hadn't been able to get a decent photo from her hotel room. So she had escaped after dinner with her camera and bathing suit, to jump in the lake and perhaps expand her portfolio. She plopped down cross-legged onto the dock, withdrawing her Nikon from its case, looking over it admiringly. Her most loyal friend. Nick, as she had dubbed him, had yet to fail her in the four years they had been together. She snapped a few photos, before the sun had set too far beyond the mountain and the light had disappeared.

There was not much she could do with so little light and no proper flash. She really preferred to work in natural light, and the flash on her camera was only basic. Ren turned towards the hotel, counting the windows up and across until she came to the one she wanted. She focused her lens onto the open window. No Kaiba that she could see. But the light was on. Probably working.

She set Nick back inside his case, letting her towel drop to the deck before she dove into the crisp, cool lake, swimming several meters before resurfacing, shaking the hair from her face. She floated across the lake on her back, her mind wandering.

Work, work, work; that was all Seto ever did. What was his aversion to fun, she wondered? Ren had a good idea of what Kaiba's true personality was, and yet he still baffled her. There were so many different contradicting facets of his personality; he was a psychiatrist's wet dream. His competitive nature went well with his tendency to overwork; yet he always had time to spare for Mokuba. He didn't overlook his loved ones like a typical workaholic... or loved _one_, rather. And he didn't _play_ conventionally, either. There was always a very curious glint in his eye whenever they argued. Like an incredibly bastardized version of a child at play.

That brighter blue, a quirk in his cheek, that tiny tick at the corner of his mouth, the smallest inkling of a smile... His face was becoming easier for Ren to read. Very expressive. Not at all bad to look at either.

Ren shot bolt upright, trying desperately to justify her thoughts. Yes. He was good looking. Just because he was attractive didn't mean that she was attracted _to_ him. She could point out cute girls left and right, and that didn't bother her, so why did thinking that Kaiba was hot bug her?

"Wow, you are _distracted_." She turned to face Mokuba, who was standing on the dock, snapping pictures with her camera, "What are you thinking of?"

"Your brother." She admitted, the miniscule flash going off in her eyes, illuminating the water around her as she swam back to the dock, "He's good looking."

"I don't think you'd be the first or last to think that, Ren."

"I know!" Ren was thankful for the darkness to hide the mad flush blossoming across her cheeks. "It's only an observation!"

"Gee, I hope I can grow up looking like Seto." Mokuba teased, taking a cautious step back as Ren snatched up her towel, "I hope I can have all of the babysitters throwing themselves all over me someday."

"_Please_, he's probably got the herps." She stuck her tongue out at the younger Kaiba. "Besides, you're plenty cute already. If I were a pubescent girl, I would think you're dreamy."

"Thanks?" He chuckled, handing over her camera as they traipsed across the lawn to the hotel. "It's good to know my nanny thinks I'm cute."

"I'm not the only one." Ren smiled, slinging her towel around her waist and stepping into the hotel lobby. "Don't try to tell me that girls aren't tr..."

Ren trailed off and slowed to a halt in the middle of the lobby. A slim dark-haired girl stood at the check-in counter, electric blue luggage sitting next to Ugged feet. Luggage that Ren was certain used to be her own. And the thick leggings she wore... maybe the fuzzy coat too, but she wasn't sure.

"Ren?" Mokuba queried, poking her side to snap her out of her trance, "What's wrong?"

The girl at the counter perked up and glanced over her shoulder. Ren met her gaze immediately, caught in a steely stare. "Everything."

"Oh my god, Ren!" She shut her eyes tight, trying desperately to vanish into thin air. Emi had spotted her. How she had found out where the retreat was, Ren did not know. But Emi had somehow found her, and there was no escaping now. "Oh wow, fancy meeting you here!"

Emi rushed forward for a hug, and had Ren's arms pinned to her sides before she had the chance to stop her. Ren grit her teeth so hard she feared they might break. "How did you find me, Emi?"

"Find you?" She parroted back, her eyes wide and confused, "Ren, I'm just on a mini-vacation, I was never looking for you. But oh, isn't it great that we've met? It's been so long, hasn't it? How've you been?"

"Magical. Let's go, Mokuba."

Emi let out a squeal of excitement, doing a strange sort of dance in place. "You're Mokuba Kaiba! Oh god, you're just adorable! You're so much cuter in person, you definitely take after your brother."

"Thanks…?" Mokuba spoke, eyebrow cocked curiously at the taller female. Though, she really was right. Even Ren could see how many of Mokuba's facial expressions directly mirrored Seto's.

"Now, speaking of Seto Kaiba… Do you know him, Ren?"

"Nope, never met him in my life." She lied, grasping the younger Kaiba by the shoulder and leading him backwards toward the elevator, "We'd better get going though, got a big day tomorrow n' all…"

"Ren."

She exhaled a slow, angry sigh through her nose, turning on the spot to face the man himself, striding purposely from the elevator in crisp black slacks and an almost blindingly perfect white tee shirt, the most casual she'd ever seen him. Had it been any other day, she'd have been incredibly distracted by the bare arms and that tiny little peek of chest from the V-neck cut of his shirt. Honestly, she didn't know how a super-nerd like Seto kept so fit. But today, she was simply too angry with him to be distracted. Angry for losing the event today, angry for their argument on the grass earlier, angry for him being so damned good looking and off-limits, and now, angry for showing up out of the blue and exposing her lie to Emi.

"What!?" Ren snapped, "What, Kaiba, what do you want now?"

"I was just curious to know why my brother had to search for you when you disappeared." His tone was cold and disapproving, his mouth set in a hard scowl. "What do I pay you for if you're just going to run off and ditch your responsibilities?"

"He was with you the whole time, Kaiba, what are you complaining about?"

"I'm complaining because I pay you more that you deserve to look after Mokuba, not go off and shoot the breeze with—"

"You just like to complain! Find my one mistake and nitpick it to death! I had one fucking lapse in judgment, get over it!"

"Ren!" She paused in her ranting and turned to Emi, who was gaping at the squabbling pair. "Do you know who you're yelling at!? What are you doing!?"

Ren threw up her hands in defeat, letting them slap wetly against the towel around her waist. She didn't think that the circumstances could be any worse.

"You know what?" She grasped Emi's hand and yanked her over to Kaiba, taking his hand and slapping them together in a handshake. "Emi, Kaiba. Kaiba, Emi. You explain why I wasn't keeping an eye on Mokuba. You kids fucking enjoy yourselves."

She turned on her heel and strode towards the elevator. Mokuba chased after her, just barely squeezing through the closing doors. Ren stood in the corner of the lift, arms crossed, glaring at the ceiling. The silence stretched taut between them, the hum of the elevator near deafening.

"Ren…" Mokuba spoke up, after a few moments of silence, "He doesn't mean to be like that."

She scoffed, shaking her head. "Yes he does, I know how he is. And why should I care? I don't care how he chooses to treat his workers like shit, and nitpick them to death over fucking Inothing/I. I don't care."

"You don't look like you don't care."

"Yeah, well, I don't. I even went to the trouble of setting Emi up with him, who I can't fucking _stand_, just so you know, and she'll probably be in his bed by the end of the hour."

Ren's face was warm and her pulse had quickened. The remorse was hitting her hard now. She didn't want Emi with him. She didn't want anything to do with Emi in general, but knowing that she was in that very hotel, flirting her face off with Kaiba made Ren's stomach churn.

"You _have_ to care, I know you do!" Mokuba argued, "The way you fight him, that's not how you would behave with any of your other bosses. You fight with him like you'd fight with a friend."

She snorted, shaking her head. "I know you know him best, but you're more sheltered than I thought if you think I'm his friend."

"Well, you're the closest thing to one he's got."

"You're playing, Mokuba." Ren rolled her eyes, brushing hair back from her eyes, "I fight him because I hate him. I don't know what he feels, but it's gotta be something like what I do. Loathing. Simple as that."

The elevator doors slid back open at the ground floor, a couple of girls scurrying in and pressing the buttons for their floors. Emi and Seto were still standing in front of the elevator, her hand on his chest and the neckline of her shirt pulled down as low as it would go. The heat rushed back into Ren's cheeks as the doors closed once again, the fire back in her eyes. "I'm gonna murder her."

Mokuba sighed, pressing the button for the ninth floor. He shook his head at the furious brunette, her arms crossed tight across her chest, glaring hotly at the corner of the elevator. "You're right. You do know loathing."


	4. Chapter 4

"Oh, good lord, this looks like my junior prom." Ren rolled her eyes, "Streamers and crepe paper weren't exactly what I was expecting."

She had to admit, though, they were used tastefully, and the rest of the ballroom was lavish enough to make up for the blue and silver streamers.

"I hope my junior prom looks like this." Mokuba snickered, offering Ren his arm, "At least if I get to go to it."

"You'll go." Ren smiled, linking her arm with his, "I'll chaperone. And pitch a fit for you if Seto doesn't let you go. And if my fit isn't enough, I'll throw you a sick-ass sweet sixteen party to make up for it. Invite a bunch of high school girls and have them go crazy in the living room like a Girls Gone Wild video."

"Awesome." He grinned from ear to ear, a light rosy blush spreading across the apples of his cheeks, "Except maybe without the girls making out with other girls. Not with the two of you in the house… I'm pretty sure Seto would not approve."

"Mm, maybe not." She shrugged her shoulders, "But you'll get a sweet party, I promise. Maybe not with underage high school booty girls, but it'll be awesome regardless. Let's go get some drinks, I'm ready to party."

"Sounds good!" Mokuba chirped as they approached the bar, leaning one elbow against the counter, "I'll have what you're having. What do you drink?"

Ren scoffed, quirking an eyebrow at the younger Kaiba. "I'm having Coke, if you're having what I'm having. I'm not gonna be held responsible for your public, underage drunkenness."

"Oh, come on, Ren. You know, Seto lets me have wine at home."

"Number one, wine is like, two percent alcohol. You're not gonna get any sort of drunk off a glass of wine. And number two, I'm not Seto, and I really don't care what he does. _I_ am not gonna be sued."

Mokuba sighed through his nose as she handed over the first soda. "You know," he began, plunking a bendy straw into the drink, taking a forceful swig, "You're way smarter than my other sitters have been. Everyone else just lets me do what I want."

Ren smirked, taking the second glass and leaning against the bar. "That's nice. But I pretty much do what _I_ want, to— Why is she here?"

She exhaled an angry groan as she laid eyes on Emi, who was strutting through the ballroom in a slinky navy cocktail dress, stalking the room like a lioness. Ren shook her head, motioning to the bartender for something strong to drop into her Coke behind Mokuba's back. She plunked the shot of Jagermeister into the bigger glass, eyeing it skeptically. Not exactly a traditional Jagerbomb, but the shot was seventy proof. If she were to be dealing with Emi all night, she would need to get as smashed as possible as quickly as she could. She knocked the drink back in a couple of gulps, knowing right away that she would need another one very soon.

"I'd ask her to leave, but it doesn't look like anyone else wants her to." Mokuba said, and Ren had to agree. Emi was really very pretty, Ren couldn't deny it, and she was drawing looks from all across the room. Two younger men (engineers? Interns, maybe?) had stopped her in mid-stride, the pair of them flirting like nothing Ren had ever seen before. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but she could tell that Emi was not happy.

Ren knew from months of club-hopping that Emi was a very systematic and calculated drunken flirt. She was a very happy drinker, very flirty and fun… until someone threw off her groove or interrupted her in the middle of a keno-escalating session (Ren watched a lot of 'The Pickup Artist'.) with a potential partner. At which point, Emi would turn into a snarling witch, slinging insults with the expertise of a seasoned bar wench. Emi was not quite at that point yet with these boys, but Ren could tell that she might get there soon if they held her up for too long. She had her eyes on a bigger prize, and anyone that got in her way would likely be destroyed.

"Watch this, she's like a professional." Ren spoke, motioning her glass at the taller brunette, who had made it past the pair of men and was continuing her hunt. "Did you see that? She rejected those two without hurting their feelings, thus leaving her with options for later. She's really good at this. I'm almost jealous."

"Almost?" Mokuba quipped, quirking an eyebrow at her, glancing slightly upward.

"Yeah, I mean, if she hadn't already taught me like half of all that." Ren shrugged, setting her glass back onto the bar and letting the bartender refill her. As much as she was loathe to admit it, when she and Emi had been friends, she'd learned a lot. She had had some great times with Emi, but the fact of the matter was, she really only had fun with her when they were both smashed. She had never really had a real, meaningful conversation with her, and though it was fun to swap clothes and stories with her, Emi just wasn't the sort of person that Ren could build a solid friendship with. And the fact that Emi had stolen half of her shit when she had moved out made it significantly easier for Ren to move past the lost friendship.

"So why don't you have a boyfriend, then?" The question stabbed deep into Ren's gut, though she was sure Mokuba hadn't intended it to hit that hard.

She sighed, opening her mouth to speak and then shaking her head, shutting her mouth closed with a snap of her teeth. There really wasn't a very good excuse. She just… had been out of the game since the last guy.

"Dating and flirting isn't the same thing." She explained, taking another swig of her refreshed drink, this time with a shot of rum. "IIIIIIII… have had a few flings… just nothing super permanent."

Ren glanced up to search out Emi, who had appeared to have made it to her ultimate goal. She stood next to Seto, a fruity, bright pink cocktail in one hand, the other bracing herself against the table next to her, effectively and covertly plumping up her breasts with her bicep. Ren exhaled, breath catching in a low, guttural growl. "Not as many as her, though. At least I've _had_ a meaningful relationship." She glanced down at Mokuba, taking another drink of her covert rum and coke. "You wanna know how many guys she's fucked?"

"Not really." He admitted, glancing back over to Seto and Emi. The pair was getting a little more snuggly, and Ren wasn't sure whether it was that or the booze that was making her cheeks burn. "Why don't you try something with him?"

She snorted, rolling her eyes at the youth, "Do we have to have this conversation again?"

"Well…" Mokuba began, shrugging his shoulders. "It's either you or her. And I don't think you want her to win."

Ren's eyes widened in realization. Emi was flirting her way not only into Kaiba's bed, but into his house, his bedroom, which was only a few doors away from her own at the manor. Which meant listening to her incessant fake screaming orgasms every night, which she had gotten enough of when they had lived together. She would have to wake up every morning to a half naked Emi in the kitchen, reading the funny pages with her boobs hanging onto the counter, bragging like she used to about her amazing lay…

"Fuck that."

She chugged the last of her drink, letting the glass clink down against the counter of the bar. Ren pushed up her cleavage in the strapless black dress, swishing her hips, the poofy chiffon twirling around her knees. She glared at the back of Emi's head, just about ready to tear her curly extensions right out. "I'll be right back."

She stomped through the ballroom, sidling past schmoozing corporates and sleazy low-rung mail-sorters. Seto and Emi stood in the far corner of the room by an empty table, very few employees dancing in a circle nearby. Ren shoved her way through the tight group, bursting out in front of the pair.

"Hey." She snapped, sticking out her hip, narrowing her gaze at Seto. "You two enjoying the party?"

Emi's eyes flashed for but a moment, before softening into a bright smile. "Oh, hi, Ren! How have you been all night? I must have missed you when I came i—"

Completely disregarding Emi, Ren brushed past and grabbed Seto by the wrist, yanking him closer. "We're dancing."

He quirked a skeptical eyebrow at her, smirking as he looked her up and down. "In those shoes?"

Admittedly, six-inch heels hadn't been the most intelligent wardrobe choice, but the red set off the black of her dress well, and coincidentally, matched Seto's button-down undershirt. "Yes."

He shrugged his shoulders with all the swagger of a man who was the boss of everything, allowing Ren to lead him to the center of the dance floor, the deejay pumping popular Top 100 dance hits into the room. "I know you don't want to dance." Ren spoke, stopping and turning around, hips swaying in time to the music, "But you're a guy, you can just let me dance on you for a while."

"Don't grind too much, or you'll disappoint yourself when your pathetic bouncing doesn't get me hot." Seto smirked, Ren blowing hot air from her lips, eyebrows set in a straight line.

"Fuck you, I'm not flirting to get anywhere, dickmouth." Ren reassured him, glancing over her shoulder, arms twirling over her head, mouthing the words to the party rock to herself as she danced, "I really just wanted to save you from her. So I had to pretend I wanted you."

"Who says I needed saving?"

"You didn't actually _like_--?" Ren whirled around, stopping dead as her gaze met his, smirking down at her amusedly. Her mouth hung open just slightly, a light, bemused smile touching her lips. "You knew I didn't like her."

He shrugged, taking her hand and pulling her closer, encouraging her to continue her dance. She had all but halted in the middle of the dance floor, throwing off the people dancing around her. "She was too enthusiastic." He leaned his head closer to her own, his breath hot on her cheek. "I do like a little bit of a chase."

"I…" Ren paused, a shiver dancing up her spine that she fought to suppress, "I just didn't want you to get any diseases or anything. It's not like I was jealous or anything, I just didn't want to have to deal with her in the house."

Seto snorted, rolling his eyes. "I'll believe that when I lose a game to Joey Wheeler." Ren opened her mouth to snap out a nasty retort, when he leaned in close, almost nose to nose with the nanny. "You know, we could make _her_ a little jealous, if you wanted her to suffer."

She tilted her head up to look into his eyes when his lips touched her own. This was so far out of bounds; she had no idea what to do. Flirty, teasing, kisses around the house were one thing, but full-on makeout sessions in public weren't something that she though Seto was interested in. But she figured, he at least trusted these people enough to not take any pictures and distribute them to the newspapers. They probably knew better, or else it would mean their jobs.

Besides, she wasn't about to protest. The ballroom was poorly lit, the music was just loud enough, and his lips were the nicest thing she'd felt in a long while. Not to mention, she was a little bit drunk. Her mind wasn't fighting much. A hand squeezed at her ass while the other held fast at her waist, his tongue snaking into her mouth. She sighed happily, arms wrapping around his neck, pushing up onto her tiptoes to get in a deeper kiss. This was definitely something she could get used to. If only for one buzzed moment.

*

"Ugh, are we going yet? I've got a fuckin' headache that could blow up half of goddamn Russia." Ren was not a happy camper the next morning, up bright and early at eight AM to pack up her things and shove off back to Domino. She stood between Seto and Mokuba in front of the hotel, her sunglasses doing very little to help alleviate her headache that the sun was only aggravating. She had continued her drinking late into the night; another shot on the dance floor, a couple more in Seto's hotel room… She had lost count at some point, and was now paying for it with a nasty hangover. A RedBull was in her left hand, a bottle of water stuffed into her purse.

"I think it's just a few more minutes now." Mokuba smiled up at the suffering nanny, trying his best to be sympathetic, though his amused smirk shone through despite his best efforts, "The hotel is just making sure all payments and deposits have been sorted out."

"Magic." Ren rolled her eyes, her gaze landing on Seto, who stood next to her, feeling equally shitty, his own sunglasses trying vainly to reflect the sun's irritating glare. She sighed, knowing full well that she'd have to have a very unpleasant talk with him about what had happened the previous night. She didn't remember a whole lot. Just that their makeout session had moved from the ballroom to his bedroom, her dress had ended up in the corner, and her shoes were in the bathroom for some reason. She had woken up in Seto's bed in her panties, her bra askew and her hair a mess. She had no idea exactly how far they had gone, and was going to be super disappointed if she couldn't remember any sex that they may have had.

She cleared her throat, glancing back up at the elder Kaiba, idly shifting the bag on her shoulder. "Hey, uh…" She coughed again, eyes shifting from his sunglasses to his ear, "We didn't fuck last night, did we?"

He glanced back down at Ren, a smirk touching his lips. "No."

She breathed a sigh of relief, thankful to know that she wouldn't be missing out on anything. "So, um… I was reeeeeeeeeeeally, really drunk last night."

"So was I."

"And, ah… that whole drunken makeout thing…"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh! Good." Ren smiled for the first time that morning, catching on immediately. She was happy to know that he hadn't completely blacked everything out… Keep it to themselves, was what he was saying. "Yeah, I think I must have dreamed that."

"Nice dream."

Her heart skipped a beat, headache all but melting away as she softened to his comment. She was happy. Happy that there was nothing to regret. For a change.

"Finally, get me out of here." Seto spoke, opening the door of the limo and sliding into the back seat, Mokuba scrambling in behind him, leaving space for Ren right next to the CEO. She set her bag onto the floor, leaning back into the plush seat and letting her eyes slip closed. As the limo began to pull away from the country hotel, she felt Seto's arm wrap around her shoulders, pulling her head to lay on his chest. She glanced up for just a second. His eyes were fixed straight ahead, not meeting her gaze. She smirked to herself, laying her head back against his chest. She would savor the moment while she could. She would milk the weekend for all it was worth. Down to the very last second she could still be in his arms.


End file.
